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The Great Gorilla Project

Summary

The Great Gorilla Project

This award-winning project gives volunteers the chance to get up close and personal with captivating and endangered mountain gorillas in the lush greenery of their natural, Ugandan habitat. The work undertaken during this mountain gorilla conservation tour is essential in bridging the gap between indigenous communities and the gorillas who share their vulnerable rainforest homes.

Volunteers will not only be able to actively contribute to the on-going protection of these incredible creatures, but will be able to experience them roaming freely in their natural habitat. Such gorilla tours will take place in Bwindi Impenetrable National Park - a sanctuary that is home to half of the world's critically endangered mountain gorillas. Here, volunteers will collaborate with the local communities on reforestation efforts and will work towards educating these communities on the importance of the gorilla.

As well as two permit-inclusive gorilla treks, this project also includes a four-day excursion to Uganda's renowned Queen Elizabeth National Park. Here volunteers will have the opportunity to track wild chimpanzees, join an unforgettable boat trip on the Kazinga Channel and accompany game-drives searching for elephants, lions and other species.

Not only is this an incredible opportunity to experience the majesty of Ugandan wildlife species in all their natural splendour, but it is also a chance to make a real difference to the conservation of one of the continent's most treasured great apes.

Helpful Project Information

Volunteers on this project will engage in a wide variety of activities as part of the project, involving themselves with the local community and supporting areas of mountain gorilla conservation in and around the national parks. They also take part in two breath-taking treks to see the beautiful endangered mountain gorillas in their natural habitat.

Gorilla Trekking

Take part in 2 gorilla treks to see two separate families of the endangered mountain gorillas in Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. Treks can last anything from 45 minutes to several hours, once the gorillas are reached you will get to spend a whole hour watching the family group feed and socialise with each other. Each family differs in size and personality, and you will get to see how the two families differ.

Chimpanzee trekking

Take part in a chimpanzee trek in Queen Elizabeth National Park. Into the forest we go to search for the chimpanzees up in the trees. There is nothing quite like hearing that chimp call for the first time.

Education

Assist in a pedal-powered film session to educate remote schools and communities about the importance of the gorilla’s conservation. The pedal-powered cinema will be showing a combination of short and long gorilla conservation films which truly captivate the children and prompt them to ask more and more questions about the gorillas that are right on their door step but who they have never seen before.

National Park Visits

Take a trip to Mgahinga National Park with some of the local schoolchildren to educate them about the fauna and flora. Volunteers will be joined by 6 children from the only special needs school in the district. Children get to see the park first hand and find out more about the animals and plants. It is also a chance to spoil them with a hearty packed lunch.

Reforestation

Assist in tree-planting and reforestation work with the local community. This is primarily for education purposes so the children learn more about the issues surrounding deforestation, and some of the seedling planted can also provide the community with materials they can use for handicrafts.

Gorilla Organisation

Spend the day visiting a few of Gorilla Organisations’ community projects. These grassroots projects consist of various things such as reformed poachers learning agriculture, organic agriculture, bee keeping for farmers with small plots of land and a visit to a local Batwa community that have been taught agricultural skills so they can provide for themselves. All these projects have been developed to help the communities that were displaced when the national parks were established.

Boat Trip

Spend an afternoon aboard a boat on the Kazinga channel to spot large pods of hippos, incredible birdlife and occasional elephants and lions coming to drink. You will spend 2 hours out on the water, with your camera in hand, taking some of the most incredible wildlife pictures. This is a definite must for bird enthusiasts.

Game Drives

Join game drives in Queen Elizabeth National Park in search of various species of African wildlife. The Park offers some incredible opportunities for elephant views, lion viewing, and even the occasional leopard and hyena have been spotted on this tour.

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Further Details

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Price details:

from £2,995

Phone:

Call 0333 333 9923 to enquire or book

Inclusions

Two gorilla-tracking permits and one chimpanzee-tracking permit
A monetary contribution to the two charities involved in the project.
Transfers to and from the airport
Full orientation and support from the project managers
Accommodation and meals as indicated

StudentUniverse has been supplying the best flight, hotel and tours deals to students around the world for years now and we’re delighted to be the preferred travel partner of gapyear.com and to make your travel experience even more amazing.

We have a great team of travel gurus that understand what a gap year is all about just waiting to help you, and since we are part of the Flight Centre Travel Group we are able to offer the best flights, gap year packages, hostels, tours, volunteer placements and insurance - the works. This is not your average travel agency, it’s the ultimate backpacker travel agency.

If you’d like to get in touch to chat about your travels, even if you’re in the preliminary stages and you’d just like some advice, give us a call on 0333 333 9923 or submit an enquiry to StudentUniverse – we’d love to hear from you.

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